To The Editor:
Why is a victim being blamed for the costs incurred by Kennett Township supervisors to prevent a taxpayer from viewing documents which are “public information?” In the article “Candidate accuses Kennett Township board of violating state Right-To-Know laws” printed September 14, 2011 in The Chester County Press, Alan Falcoff, chairman of the Kennett Board of Supervisors, admittedly authorized the squandering of over $14,000 on legal fees to block a Township resident and voter from his legal right to view public records.
The Township used the Solicitor’s office to purposely block and delay the request which should have been granted without question. With Mr Falcoff up for election this fall one can only speculate why he has chosen to waste taxpayer money and prevent the public from knowing something it clearly seems he does NOT want the voters to know.
The Pennsylvania Right-To Know law passed on February 14, 2008 was designed to prevent just this type of abuse of power, secrecy and non-disclosure of public information. Per Scudder Stevens, one document he requested and finally released by the Falcoff administration five months later was the accounting for the Township’s Open Space Funds. The document is just two-pages in length.
By his own actions it seems Mr. Falcoff is suggesting that it is OK to spend hard earned Township money to fight the release of public information instead of being transparent. As a taxpayer, I seriously question this type of leadership that willfully restricts public information at such an exorbitant cost to taxpayers. This is blatant and purposeful mismanagement of township funds, poor leadership, and faulty judgment. Readers should think what else is the Falcoff administration hiding and how much of our taxpayer money are they willing to spend at blocking justice!
Margot Taylor
Kennett Township
